(July 2005) Parkview Hospital is helping Manchester College equip its new $17
million Science Center with the latest instrumentation and equipment.
Parkview’s Community Health Improvement Program has awarded a $20,000
cash grant as part of its ongoing mission to enhance the health of the
community the hospital system serves.

The college plans to fill the 85,600-square-foot structure with $500,000
in laboratory and classroom equipment. While all Manchester students
will take science classes in the new high-tech classrooms and research
laboratories, the Science Center also will help Manchester continue its
well-respected tradition of preparing students for careers in the
sciences and medicine.

Currently, 2001 grad Frederick Balagadde is isolating bacteria in
nanotechnology research recently profiled by NPR’s All Things
Considered. Distinguished alumni include Paul Flory, Nobel laureate
in polymer chemistry; Roy Plunkett, inventor of Teflon; Gene Likens,
discoverer of acid rain, and Jane Henney, the first woman to head the
U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

More than 300 Manchester alumni practice medicine, and others are lead
researchers in industry and academia. They collectively are responsible
for more than 100 patents, ranging from bonding calcium in orange juice
to a key sequence in Microsoft software. In addition, at least 10 alumni
are physicians in Parkview Health Care System. Since 1977, Manchester
has provided a major in medical technology in cooperation with Parkview
Hospital and other medical centers.

The Science Center will be ready when students return for their fall
semester on Aug. 31. It is debt-free, the investment of generous alumni
and other friends of the college. The dedication of the structure
begins at 3:30 p.m. on Friday, Sept. 16.